Morrisons has issued an apology after a customer discovered a monkey teething toy placed directly next to the African and Caribbean section in one of its London stores, an incident she described as a 'racist joke'.
Customer's discovery
Nadeane Smallwood, 37, an operations manager from Gunnersbury Park, spotted the mini monkey teething toy, priced at £5, in the world foods aisle of the Morrisons Brentford Waterfront store in West London on Saturday, June 20. The toy was positioned immediately beside a sign displaying Jamaican and Nigerian flags, she said.
'I noticed it straight away and I thought, why on earth did they put that there,' Smallwood said. 'It's not a big Morrisons, so I looked around the whole shop, and there was a bit of a pattern to where the hanging items are placed; the locations of them all made sense. They had thought about it; it was not random.'
Reaction and apology
Smallwood, who holds both British and Jamaican citizenship, described the placement as 'taking the p*ss' and '100% a racist joke'. She added: 'I have travelled a lot, and you get an odd comment, but I never experienced it so blatantly in the UK. I have never experienced anything so brazen, and all just for existing.'
She did not speak to staff at the time because she was concerned about a potential conflict. Morrisons responded swiftly after the incident was reported. A spokesperson said: 'We sincerely apologise for the placement of this product, it was never our intention to offend. As soon as we were made aware, we removed the product.'
Broader context
The incident has sparked discussions about racial sensitivity in retail settings. This is not the first time a major UK supermarket has faced criticism over product placement perceived as racially insensitive. The company has not commented further on how the placement occurred or what measures are being taken to prevent similar incidents.
